New To CPAP, hoping to get some help reading this chart

[JayH]

Like the title says, I recently purchased a CPAP to deal with what my PCP said is most likely sleep apnea. I opted to buy it without a sleep study/prescription after doing some research and weighing the cost benefits. Anyway, I'm just trying to see if any adjustments need to be made. I'm definitely sleeping better than I was, but not nearly as good as I used to pre-sleep apnea. 

Any help would be greatly appreciated!

Jay

   

[mesenteria]

Hi.  Here is what we recommend to newcomers who are not getting what they think, or hope, they need from their device:

a. Turn off 'ramp' function.  We try to convince people to just shut it off.  They won't miss it, almost to a person.  It just skews the AHI at the end of the sleep period, and you get no therapy as you fall asleep.

b.  Raise your upper pressure.  You're spending a lot of time up at the upper limit, but your stated AHI is rather higher than we like to see.  I don't know why you can't get it down into the 1.2 range with a little tweaking, and the first bet would be to raise your upper limit, by about 3 to start with. It might mean some adjusting, both to the pressure, and to the impact it might have on the seal around your face.

c. It seems that your events tend to cluster, and that most often signals chin-tucking. Many of us, most of us, tend to lower our chins toward our chests as we get comfortable in sleep. However, you're probably pinching closed, or mostly so, your airway. If you suspect this is the case, purchase a suitably sized soft foam cervical collar and wear it whenever you sleep.

If that helps, we can add other improvements.

[JayH]

Thank you so much for the quick reply!

My ramp function is turned off, but I'll definitely try the rest of your advice. Very much appreciated. 

Jay

[KeepSmiling]

Jay,

What is PCP?

Are you trying to titrate (figure out your pressure) yourself? Did you see any doctor about your sleepiness?

I recommended you are followed by someone to make sure you only need a machine and not missing a diagnosis.

I agree you need to increase the pressure range a couple of degrees.

In a lab setting the patient is monitored and numbers slowly increased. Oxygen levels, SpO2, needed to get to a minimum of 90%.

I am not a doctor and I know nothing about you, you need to be careful.

[clownbell]

I agree with the notion of Positional Apnea. You can read about it in the wiki. A cervical collar of the correct size should help.

Not familiar enough with the AirCurve to make an intelligent remark, but if it were an AirSense 10 AutoSet I would say minimum pressure of 7.

[JayH]

Made some of the adjustments recommended above, and these were the results:

   

How long should it take until I start to feel more energetic and less sluggish? Looking forward to finally getting back to my old self!

Jay

[Brazen]

Great advice so far.

I just want to add that sometimes just changing your pillow can help with the positional apnea.
If you use multiple, or fluffy, pillows try to switch to a flatter one.
Think about the angle of your head/neck as you relax.

[Melman]

If you want to learn more about soft cervical collars and positional apnea see the link below. The WIKI article on soft cervical collars has and embedded ink in blue to an article on positional apnea.

[clownbell]

Jay - your numbers look good. As you can tell, however, numbers are not the whole story. The more important part is how you feel -- refreshed, clear-headed, etc. Some folks see results earlier than others. Stay the course, persevere, you will get there.